El Greco: Hungarian Museum of Fine Arts. Nov 8th 2022

https://www.szepmuveszeti.hu/kiallitasok/el-greco

An excellent and illuminating show. It was just the right size to give a good picture of his entire career withu0ot being wearyingly comprehensive  and of a size that could not really be truly enjoyed in one visit . The labelling of the pictures was exemplary, in its detail and thoughtfulness. Of his work and style, (of which I really knew very little) I particularly liked his use of vivid and sharply contrasting colours, particularly/y in his earlier work; it seemed to me that as he got older, these became more subdued and perhaps subtle. I also had my attention drawn to the depiction of the sky in his (almost exclusively) religious paintings, -particularly of the Virgin Mary. In his later work, it became intriguingly abstract and threw attention on to the figure. It was also intriguing to see how he used identical facial poses and expressions, particularly when such works were hung in close juxtaposition.

The background information about the extent of his workshop with the number of versions of paintings produced was also fascinating and this provided a fascinating glimpse into the way art was produced at that, and I think later, times.

And, entertainingly, at the very end, there was a version by his son of one of his earlier famous paintings (was it perhaps a copy that had been started by his seemingly extensive workshop?) which showed pretty conclusively that artistic talent is not always handed down in the genes!

 

Kiscelli Museum, Budapest. Feb 3rd 2023

World Press Photos 2022. Hungarian National Museum, Oct 21st 2022